the napa river, flood stage, 16 feet. it will go over about a foot over flood stage tonight, tomorrow morning, same holds true for the napa river. over flood stage for a temporary amount of time and then recede quickly tomorrow. we'll check out the rainfall totals and the forecast coming up. >> ama: a warning in the south bay. the creek is about to overflow its banks. we're live in men menlo park. >> this is the bridge and crews just arrive. they brought sandbags and are placing them here along the street. they've also blocked off this entire area. they're trying to keep the curious public away from the rising waters of the creek. where we are, the creek divides palo alto and menlo park, and the last time it overran its

banks was back in 1998, and they think it's going to flood again tonight. within the past hour or so men lo park firefighters have been driving through neighborhoods, warning residents about the rising creek. the san mateo county security alert system is calling people. there are homes that run along -- right along the creek, and those residents are feeling a bit nervous right now. >> this is the highest it's been this season. >> it came up high two weeks ago. this is obviously the highest. >> must be concerned about it. >> i'm concerned about property damage and flooding for myself and my neighbors. absolutely. >> last time saw this was in 2003. i'm happy i renewed any flood insurance this year. >> are you concerned? >> i'm happy i renewed any flood insurance this year. >> water levels in the creek

catch basin and on readings on meeters. all indicators are it's going to overrun its back, and it could affect highway 101 near east palo alto so drivers are being warned to be on alert. >> ama: now two cornell bernard in sonoma county where there's severe flooding. reporter: if you're trying to get to napa on highway 121, forget it. this entire intersection is completely flooded, under water. the water is moving very fast. it's very cold tonight. in fact, this is about as far as i'm going to be venturing into it. this is the heart of the wine-making region, and where highway 121 meets highway 12. a lot of vineyards are underwater. here's what this looked like before sunset. water raging across the roomplet all coming from nearby sonoma

crook, which has overflowed its banks. the water spilling into farmland and vineyards. luckily no reports of injuries or flooded homes. the town of sonoma is two miles from here. it's dry, but getting there is a challenge. detours are set up. let's go back live to this truly amazing shot. sonoma creek, 200-yard from where we are tonight, sonoma -- chardonnay graips over -- grapes over here, and behind us, where the traffic signals are, water is three to four feet deep. anyone's guess when that's major intersection will be re-opened to traffic. we're live in the sonoma valley, abc-7 news. >> a stretch of stoney point road just re-opened after a sink hole closed it for several hours today. sergio quintana is live at that scene. reporter: the big problem here was runoff following those

really heavy storms earlier in the day. that runoff basically overwhelmed a drainage culvert, creating this huge sink hole. crews were able to install these steel plates over the road so the cars could safely pass. rushing runoff from heavy rains earlier in the day overwhelmed this drainage culvert under stoney point road and threatened to chew up more of the pavement. >> water is traveling underneath the pipe, creating a cavern, and potential -- basically a sinkhole. >> crews installed the greats to help with the weight of cars passing over, and in petaluma, the river crept up to the downtown area on c street. some businesses had their sandbags prepped. and sandbags were at apartments. water barely squeezed under the roadway but flowed over earlier in the day.

up the river, will brown and his sons assess water levels from a neighborhood bridge and notice debris being rushed down the river. >> looks like a lot of sticks have been coming off from the grass because the water is carrying it away. >> in pengrove, the creek jumped its banks and soaked the park. >> there was water coming in over the banks in the park area itself, and it's flooded into the park. but not too high in other areas. reporter: the wind and rain also made for challenging driving conditions. this two-car crash on the northbound 101 freeway near san rafael squeezed traffic down to two lanes while emergency crews responded. >> now, these steel plates are a temporary fix but it did allow sonoma county road crews to re-open this road an hour ago. the other crews that are still keeping busy in the north bay or power crews. pg&e reports they still have about 3800 homes that are without power at this point.

reporting live, i'm sergio quintana. abc-7 news. >> ama: in forestville, fir tree fell on a house. no one was injured but power was out in the area for a while in accept rosa on northbound highway 1 near the airport road exit, car rolled over after skidding on the wet pavement. there was one minor injury in the accident. >> in el sobrante, a creek backed up and flooded as many as four homes, on apian way. one resident said the water actually started flowing into his house. >> members of the lawn bowling club in mess stanton were lucky no one was in the building as a giant redwood tree crashed through the roof. the tree fell from a neighbor's property and blocked part of the street. but the road is now clear. >> thousands of bay area residents were without power as the rain and wind pounded the

region. right now 5500 customers are still without power. stay with abc-7 news for continuing storm watch cover. leigh glaser will have the forecast in a few minutes minut. still to come, a frantic rescue to find two kayakers caught in rising storm waters. the storm is bringing lots of snow the sierra. how much and what you can expect for christmas skiing. >> we're tracking the storm on live doppler 7hd. leigh will have the forecast in

>> a father and daughter strand while kayaking are safe after a dramatic rescue in redwood city. fire protection crews from redwood city and menlo park got a call that two kayakers war were stabbed in the wetlands, and using try angulation they were found in minutes. they were stuck in mud when the tide turned quickly. the weather is also affecting bay area airports. san francisco international, up to 30 flights canceled and many delayed. that includes incoming and departing flights. >> i found out my flight had been cancelled after four hours

waiting in the airport. i had to wait another three hours in a customer service line which i didn't get to the end of before the booth closed, and ended up having to call in and organize that. then they switched me on airlines. >> ama: a nightmare. officials urge people to check with the airlines for the status of their flights before coming to the airport. for up to date information go to the flight tracker on the front page of our web site, abc7news.com. >> just ahead, lots of wind and rain here. what about in the sierra? we'll take you up the hill to see the conditions. >> we're tracking the storm on live doppler 7hd. you can see the band of rain there. leigh glaser is up next with the forecast. >> mike: the playoff picture cleared up today in the afc. andruw expluk his colts -- andrew luck and his

you know how much grandma wanted to be here for your fist christmas? you see grandma lives waaaay down here, and you live way up here.

brian, your cousin, he's a little bit older than you, he lives here, in chicago. and your aunt lisa lives here, in baltimore. uncle earnie? waaay out in hawaii. but don't you worry, we will always be together for christmas. [ male announcer ] being together is the best part of the holidays and cheerios is happy to be part of the family. you just ate dallas!

>> take a look at this, time lapse look as the storm moved through from the camera on mt. tamalpais in mill valley. you can see lots of rain and serious wind gusts blowing

around the trees. the strong and steady storm is pounding the sea wall along coastal communities. giant swells and pacifica closed the local pier while stinging rain kept most people indoors. a little farther north in san francisco. a two-mile stretch of the coast highway was blocked off. bought southbound lanes were flooded. the northbound lanes were shut down as city work crews repaired a dangling traffic light that was knocked loose. we'd like you to share your weather video or pictures with us. send them to ureport@kgo-tv.com, or sayre them with us on our facebook page or an twitter@abc-7 bay area. >> the storm is a good reminder to make sure your ready for a rainy season or any type of natural hazard, have emergency kits stocked with items including battery operated radios and flashlights, extra

batteries, three-day supply of food and water for everyone in the family, and a manual can opener. guidelines for stocking your emergency skit and developing a plan for your family are posted on abc7news.com. >> the weather is bringing snow and lots of it to the sierra. chains are mandatory on almost all mountain highways. here's a view from highway 80 at donner lake. lots of snow there tow trucks are the only cars on the road. the lanes are full of traffic where 267 meets north star but cars are moving slowly. the snow is making skiers very happy. this video from heavenly valley. a foot and a half to three feet of new snow fill overnight, and more today is adding to that total. >> and for exactly what going on outside, let's get to leigh glaser. >> leigh: live doppler 7hd, boy, a terrific tool on a day like today. you can get a sense that this thing is working a little overtime. you can see the returns.

boom. some very heavy rainfall. just in the last two hours, making its way. the peninsula, fremont, to the south and east of san jose, and right now things are starting to wind down a little bit. morgan hill, picking up some rain. most of the rain in the north bay ended. picking up moderate showers in santa cruz. all of this is sliding to the south. and we'll look for clearing overnight tonight. how much rain? boy, a lot, in such a short amount of time. over four inches in the north coast, half moon bay, close to an inch and a half. almost an inch in san francisco, san rafael, two -- over two inches there. almost two and a half. over an inch at napa, and oakland. and lesser amounts in livermore, andow talk all the rain and couple it with the wind, golden gate bridge reported a wind gust of 57 miles-per-hour. in the valley reporting a rain gust of 48 miles-per-hour.

so a lot of visibility concerns and a lot of high winds and a lot of water out there today. good news is that the rain will be ending overnight. get ready for a dry day for christmas eve, and then another weaker storm system will move in for christmas day. here's a three-quarter satellite radar composite. this is the actual cold front developing just off the coast. and check it out as i animate this. there it is. we'll back it up again. this was from 7:00 this morning. the cold front hadn't even really formed yet, and then at 3:00 you seek in the moderate rain moving in south of san jose, and towards the east bay, and now all of that has pushed off towards the sierra. so we'll say goodbye to that system and hello to another one. 6:00 tonight, all the rain moving out by 10:00. watch out for patchy fog developing by tomorrow morning. 5:00 a.m. for monday, and then by tomorrow afternoon, we'll look for dry conditions. the clouds will thicken up by

late in the day, and look at christmas morning. 7:00 a.m. we're looking at the new batch of clouds and also rain moving in. noontime on christmas day, the rain starts from north to south, and by 5:00 christmas evening we're all going to be wet. not a strong system so keep that in mind. the worst is over in terms of the larger storm for us today. winter storm warning until monday morning. six to 12 inches above 7,000 feet tonight. two to six inches near lake level. if skiers can get up there by tomorrow afternoon as we get a break. it will be cold tonight. inland temperatures, mid-up to 30ers. elsewhere, cooler than lanight. and'll bring out the sunshine tomorrow. 53, san francisco, livermore, mid-50s. 56, watsonville, the seven-day forecast. a dry day on christmas eve, and

then thicken the clouds and rain for christmas day. showers wednesday, dry thursday, and mike will be here on the morning news to give you updates. >> mike shumann is here with sports. big day in the nfl. >> mike: it was, people looking for playoff spots. not the raiders. their season is getting uglier. one of the most incompetent records in their franchise record. the raider fans still on the band wagon. cam newton threw for 174-yard, panthers up seven. a very physical game. watch carson palmer just get crushed by greg hardy. a flag thrown for unnecessary roughness. palmer left the game and did not return with a rib injury. cam newton kicks, kelly started a scuffle. refs missed the kick. yell panellized matt leinart 115

expwrardz this one pick, and that pick gave the panthers their only other touchdown of the game. raiders fall to 4-11. 17-6 your final. >> here we good. arrowhead stadium, kansas city and chiefs. charles made him sweat. chiefs down 13-10. andrew, will, cam newton's nfl record for most passes by a rookie. colts clinch the wild card playoff spot, 20-1 the final. >> cincinnati can clinch a final afc wild card spot with a win over the steelers. ben roethlisberger pecked off by reggie nelson, and i was costly. josh brown makes the game-winning 43-yard field goal with four seconds left.

bengals moving on the playoffs, 13-10 the final. the afc playoff roster is set. >> houston, opening the door for the broncos to take over the top seed in the afc with a loss to the vikings. former standard cardinal tony gear hart playing. >> 49ers and seahawks underway in seattlement jim harbaugh's 49th birthday, niner win they clinch the afc west but have to do it without justin smith. bum left elbow ending his streak of 185 straight starts. seattle leads 21 or right now in the first half. >> defending super bowl champion giants trying to stay alive for the postseason, facing the ravens. joe flacco making things difficult. threw for 309 yards, two t.d.s, this one to ray rice. ravens clinch the everybody action afc north.

>> cowboys playoff chances took hit against the saints. romo to austin. cowboys scored two t.d.s in the final four minutes to send it to overtime. drew brees had 446 yards passing. colston fumbles at the 20-yard to the dallas two yardline. the south carolina recovery and hartley kicks the game-winner. saints are out but they win it in overtime. >> cowboys only needed some help to win next week over the redskins. washington facing the eagles. rg iii two t.d.s in his return from a knee injury. they win 27-20, and can clinch the division with a win over dallas next week, and niner highlights tonight at 11:00. am aa

>> ama: join my tonight. stormy weather is creating a big mess for travelers but your return trip could be worse. new worries about the nationwide holiday travel nightmare after christmas. >> anyone at 11:00 here, we're following severe flooding around the bay area. what you need to look out for at

9:00 and 11:00 on abc-7 news. and a last check on the weather. leigh glaser you can see the worst is just about over. the heaviest rain has pushed almost out of the viewing area. san jose, still seeing pockets of moderate rain but give it another couple of hours and we'll start to see some signs of clearing, and we get a dry day tomorrow which will be nice. >> thank you so much. that will be us for abc-7 news at 6:00. leigh will be back for another update. captioned by closed captioning services inc.

>> right now, sitting down with the stars of les mis! >> you wait long time in this career for opportunities like this. >> reliving a devastating disaster on the big screen! >> it is very difficult to imagine something as large as that. >> bette and billy learn to get along. >> well how come your's always telling me what to do? well bawlings you are easy. >> and jam my kimmel moves to not so late night. >> it is exciting. >> we're rolling out the red carpet now. >> i am jimmy kimmel and you are watching on the red carpet. >> welcome to on the red carpet from nokia plaza live in los angeles. i'm rachel smith we'll got you to the red carpet in a